page_title: Mariya Svistunova
section_title: Life at court
hierarchical_section_title: Mariya Svistunova / Biography / Life at court
context_page_description: Mariya Alekseevna Svistunova, née Rzhevskaya was a lady-in-waiting at the Russian Court and a convert to Roman Catholicism. She was the daughter of writer Aleksei Andreevich Rzhevsky and Glafira Ivanovna Rzhevskaya. She married Nikolai Petrovich Svistunov and they had two sons and four daughters.
context_section_description: Mariya was educated at home. She was instructed in sciences and music by her mother, who was a virtuoso harpist. Beautiful, slim and young, Mariya Rzhevskaya appeared at the court at the beginning of the reign of Paul I and was appointed lady-in-waiting. The emperor decided to take charge of her life himself and find a husband for her. His choice fell on the 29-year-old chamberlain Nikolai Petrovich Svistunov. He was a kind and noble person, and possessed a large fortune. Together with his father (Peter S. Svistunov, 1752–1808), he was among the favourites of the Emperor. So Mariya Rzhevskaya had to comply with this offer. The wedding was scheduled for 30 May 1800 in Pavlovsk.
caption: Glafira Ivanovna Rzhevskaya (after Dimitri Levicki)
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